The members of the WHA generally meet every year in May in Geneva at the Palace of Nations, the location of WHO Headquarters. The main tasks of the WHA are to decide major policy questions, as well as to approve the WHO work programme and budget and elect its Director-General (every fifth year) and annually to elect ten members to renew part of its executive board.[1] Its main functions are to determine the policies of the Organization, supervise financial policies, and review and approve the proposed programme budget.
Members, observers and rules
The original membership of the WHA, at the first assembly held in 1948, numbered 55 member states.[2] The WHA has, currently, 194 member states (all UN members without Liechtenstein, plus the Cook Islands and Niue).[3][4] Also WHA uncludes two associate members, Puerto Rico and Tokelau.
The Assembly is governed by Rules of Procedure of the World Health Assembly;[5] agenda items are set by the General Committee of the Assembly, a group of 25 individuals that includes the President and subcommittee chairs, and a number of delegates elected by the Assembly previous.[5]
"#TaiwanCanHelp" installation art displayed in front of the Palace of Nations in Geneva during the 2023 World Health Assembly
Taiwan was invited as an observer to the WHA for 8 years between 2008 and 2016, under the name "Chinese Taipei".[6][7] However, since the 71st WHA in 2017, Chinese pressure has prevented Taiwan's participation in the WHA.[8] Representatives from many countries, including the U.S. secretary of health and human servicesAlex Azar, have voiced support for Taiwan's inclusion in the Assembly in opposition to China's coercion and threats.[9][10][11]
Executive board
Each year, the WHA elects members from among its ranks to renew the executive board (EB). This body is governed in Chapter VI, Articles 24 through 29, of the Constitution of the WHO. The EB must have an equitable geographic distribution, and "shall be elected for three years and may be re-elected... The Board shall meet at least twice a year and shall determine the place of each meeting."[12] This is invariably chosen (by consensus) to be Geneva. A current list of members on the executive board can be derived through consultation of the WHA #Annual Assemblies summaries which are posted below.
Resolutions
The main international policy frameworks adopted through WHA resolutions include:
In addition, the WHA has endorsed through resolutions a number of WHO action plans dealing with different areas to improve health around the world, such as:
Worldwide eradication of smallpox, first endorsed in 1959, and then declared to have been won in 1980[13]
Worldwide eradication of polio, first endorsed in 1988,[14] recently re-affirmed in 2011[15]
Control of human hookworm infection through regular deworming of at-risk school children, endorsed in 2001
Among other actions, the 65th Assembly endorsed the Rio Political Declaration to address the social determinants of health, intended to spearhead support for all countries to adopt inclusive Health For All approaches to health promotion.[21] It also endorsed the first World Immunization Week.[22]
2013: Sixty-sixth WHA
In her address to the 66th WHA in May 2013, DGWHO Margaret Chan traced a brief history of revisions to the International Health Regulations following the SARS outbreak in 2002–3, the "first severe new disease of the 21st century." She observed that the two new diseases WHO is dealing with in 2013 are the novel coronavirus (MERS), from the same family as SARS, detected in 2012 in Saudi Arabia, and the first-ever human infections with the H7N9 avian influenza virus reported in China in 2013.[23] She attributed the positive report by the World Health Statistics (May 2013) on dramatic improvement in health in the world's poorest countries from 1993 to 2013, to the emphasis placed on poverty alleviation by the Millennium Development Goals.[23] She announced the emergence of global action plans for noncommunicable diseases, mental health, and the prevention of avoidable blindness and visual impairment calling for a life course approach which includes "equity through universal health coverage," preventive strategies and "integrated service delivery."[23]
Chan declared at the assembly that intellectual property, or patents on strains of new virus, should not impede nations from protecting their citizens by limiting scientific investigations. Following the 2012 MERS outbreak, Saudi Arabia Deputy Minister of Health Ziad Memish raised concerns that scientists who applied for a patent would not allow the MERS-Coronavirus to be used for investigations by other scientists and were, therefore, delaying the development of diagnostic tests. Ten of the 22 people who died and 22 of 44 cases reported were in Saudi Arabia.[24] Saudi Arabia–based microbiologist Ali Mohamed Zaki reported the first known case, a 60-year-old Saudi man who got sick in June 2012 on ProMed-mail, a public health on-line forum[25] then published more details including the virus's genetic makeup and closest relatives.[25][26] The Erasmus Medical Center "tested, sequenced and identified" a sample provided by Ali Mohamed Zaki.[27] Erasmus MC and Dr. Zaki strongly refuted all allegations concerning a presumed lack of willingness to cooperate in research into the new MERS coronavirus, making diagnostic tests and virus specimens freely available to all research institutions around the globe.[28]
2014: Sixty-seventh WHA
The 67th WHA took place in Geneva on 19–24 May 2014. Among the more than 20 resolutions adopted by the Assembly included ones concerning strengthening of national drug management systems to address antimicrobial resistance; implementation of the Minamata Convention to protect human health and the environment from effects of exposure to mercury and mercury compounds; and improving access to essential medicines worldwide.[29] Also endorsed was a global monitoring framework for maternal, infant and child nutrition.[30][31]
Following the 67th WHA, DGWHO Chan was criticized by the Association of Correspondents Accredited to the United Nations (ACANU) for not having spoken directly to the media during the course of the Assembly.[32]
2015: Sixty-eighth WHA
The 68th session of the WHA took place in Geneva on 18–26 May 2015. Jagat Prakash Nadda assumed the presidency of WHA. India assumed the presidency after a gap of 19 years.[citation needed]
During the assembly the WHA agreed to the Global Malaria Strategy and Programme Budget for 2016–2017, polio, International Health Regulations, strengthening surgical care, WHO's reform of its emergency and response programme, antimicrobial resistance, immunization gaps, malnutrition, air pollution, and epilepsy. Annual health awards were given by the DGWHO and the President of WHA.[33]
2016: Sixty-ninth WHA
The 69th World Health Assembly took place on 23–28 May 2016, and agreed to pursue the health-related Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through a comprehensive set of foundational steps, prioritizing universal health coverage, working with actors outside the health sector to address the social, economic and environmental root causes of antimicrobial resistance and other human health problems, to continue expanding efforts to address poor maternal and child health and infectious diseases in developing countries, and to focus upon equity within and between countries. Delegates decided to invite the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control's (WHO FCTC) Conference of the Parties (COP) to provide information on outcomes of this biennial event to future World Health Assembly meetings.[citation needed]
2017: Seventieth WHA
The 70th World Health Assembly took place on 22–31 May 2017. For the first time since 2009, Taiwan was completely excluded from the WHA, following the election of Tsai Ing-wen and subsequent political pressure from China.[34]
2018: Seventy-first WHA
The 71st World Health Assembly took place on 21–26 May 2018.[35]
The 74th World Health Assembly took place virtually on 24 May – 1 June 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The 2021 event focused on the theme, "Ending this pandemic, preventing the next: building together a healthier, safer and fairer world".[44]
The 75th World Health Assembly took place on 22–28 May 2022. The theme of the 2022 Health Assembly was: Health for peace, peace for health.[46]
2023: Seventy-sixth WHA
The 76th World Health Assembly took place on 21–30 May 2023. The theme of the 2023 Health Assembly was: WHO at 75: Saving lives, driving health for all.[47]
2024: Seventy-seventh WHA
The 77th World Health Assembly will take place from 27 May to 1 June 2024.
The United Nations (UN) is a diplomatic and political international organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and serve as a centre for harmonizing the actions of nations. It is the world's largest international organization. The UN is headquartered in New York City, and the UN has other offices in Geneva, Nairobi, Vienna, and The Hague, where the International Court of Justice is headquartered at the Peace Palace.
The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. It is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, and has six regional offices and 150 field offices worldwide.
The United Nations System consists of the United Nations' six principal bodies, the Specialized Agencies and related organizations. The UN System includes subsidiary bodies such as the separately administered funds and programmes, research and training institutes, and other subsidiary entities. Some of these organizations predate the founding of the United Nations in 1945 and were inherited after the dissolution of the League of Nations.
The International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes is an international health policy framework for breastfeeding promotion adopted by the World Health Assembly (WHA) of the World Health Organization (WHO) in 1981. The Code was developed as a global public health strategy and recommends restrictions on the marketing of breast milk substitutes, such as infant formula, to ensure that mothers are not discouraged from breastfeeding and that substitutes are used safely if needed. The Code also covers ethical considerations and regulations for the marketing of feeding bottles and teats. A number of subsequent WHA resolutions have further clarified or extended certain provisions of the Code.
The Union for International Cancer Control or UICC is a non-governmental organisation with some 1,180 member organisations in more than 170 countries.
Observer status is a privilege granted by some organizations to non-members to give them an ability to participate in the organization's activities. Observer status is often granted by intergovernmental organizations (IGO) to non-member parties and international nongovernmental organizations (INGO) that have an interest in the IGO's activities. Observers generally have a limited ability to participate in the IGO, lacking the ability to vote or propose resolutions.
The Health Metrics Network (HMN) was a global health partnership focused on strengthening health information systems in low and middle income countries, launched in May 2005 during the 58th session of the World Health Assembly (WHA) and dissolved on 31 May 2013. Hosted by the World Health Organization (WHO) in Geneva, Switzerland, the HMN's stated purpose was to make available timely and accurate health information by encouraging joint funding and development of country health information systems, to improve health and save lives.
Middle East respiratory syndrome–related coronavirus (MERS-CoV), or EMC/2012 (HCoV-EMC/2012), is the virus that causes Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS). It is a species of coronavirus which infects humans, bats, and camels. The infecting virus is an enveloped, positive-sense, single-stranded RNA virus which enters its host cell by binding to the DPP4 receptor. The species is a member of the genus Betacoronavirus and subgenus Merbecovirus.
The Ministry of Health, commonly abbreviated to MoH, is the ministry overseeing the health care and health policy of Saudi Arabia. The ministry is tasked with formulating strategies to ensure public health in the country, while also managing crucial health infrastructure.
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus is an Ethiopian public health official, researcher, diplomat, and the Director-General of the World Health Organization since 2017. Tedros is the first African to become WHO Director-General, receiving an endorsement for the role by the African Union. He played a role in the response to the Ebola virus epidemic, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the 2022–2023 mpox outbreak.
Harsh Vardhan is an Indian otorhinolaryngologist. He had served as the Minister of Health and Family Welfare, Minister of Science and Technology and Minister of Earth Sciences in the BJP-led NDA government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi from 30 May 2019 to 7 July 2021. He represents Chandni Chowk in Delhi as a Member of Parliament in the 17th Lok Sabha. He was elected to the office of chairperson of executive board of the World Health Organization from May 22, 2020. Vardhan has been prominent in the Indian government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic. He later resigned from his cabinet post ahead of the cabinet reshuffle in July 2021.
Since 2012, an outbreak of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus has affected several countries, primarily in its namesake, the Middle East. The virus, which causes Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS), is a novel coronavirus that was first identified in a patient from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on 6 June 2012.
Lee Ming-liang is a Taiwanese geneticist who led the Department of Health from 2000 to 2002. After Lee left office, Taiwan was hit by the 2003 SARS outbreak, and he was named to a committee convened to research the disease.
The World Hepatitis Alliance (WHA) is an international non-governmental organisation best known for its role in advocating and awareness-raising for the elimination of viral hepatitis. The organisation represents 249 members from 84 countries worldwide. WHA holds official relations status at the World Health Organization (WHO), and consultative status at the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).
The following lists events that happened with or in collaboration with the United Nations and its agencies in the year 2020.
The World Health Organization (WHO) is a leading organisation involved in the global coordination for mitigating the COVID-19 pandemic within the broader United Nations response to the pandemic.
The director-general of the World Health Organization (WHO) is the chief executive officer of the World Health Organization and the principal advisor to the United Nations on matters pertaining global health. The director general is elected by and answers to the World Health Assembly (WHA). The current director-general is Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, who was appointed on 1 July 2017, and re-appointed on 24 May 2022. The Director-General also leads the WHO Secretariat and is also the ex-officio Secretary of the World Health Assembly, the WHO Executive Board, and of all commissions and committees, and conferences convened by the Organization.
World Patient Safety Day (WPSD), observed annually on 17 September, aims to raise global awareness about patient safety and call for solidarity and united action by all countries and international partners to reduce patient harm. Patient safety focuses on preventing and reducing risks, errors and harm that happen to patients during the provision of health care.
Taiwan and the World Health Organization (WHO) have a complicated history due to Taiwan and the WHO's relationship with China.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
